Photo composite by Jeanne Kortekamp; left photo by Joe Kemper, right photo by DESIGN PICS/COLETTE SCHARF

According to the accounts
in Matthew, Mark and Luke,
on the night before he died
on the cross, Jesus celebrated
a Seder, a Jewish
Passover supper. Although Catholics
know this Holy Thursday evening meal
as the Lord's Supper, Jesus and the
Twelve were also celebrating the first
night of Passover.

Born and raised in the Jewish faith,
I became a Catholic 10 years ago. Growing
up, I celebrated many Passover
Seders with my family. It came as no
surprise to me that the Twelve expected
Jesus to attend a Seder that evening. As
Jews, they would be surprised if he did
not. What they did not expect at this
"last supper" was to hear him announce
the eucharistic sacrifice of his body and
blood. The apostles, called by Jesus,
brought to this night of nights their
Jewish traditions received from the
Prophet Moses.

As a Catholic convert from Judaism,
I carried these same traditions into my
conversion and I felt the same call. As
I prepared for my First Communion,
this Passover Seder supper with Jesus
and his 12 apostles took on a profoundly
new meaning for me. Why did
Jesus choose this ancient Jewish celebration
to institute the Sacrament of the
Holy Eucharist?